Statement-of-Reasons Pattern
Using this type of organizational pattern, the speaker presents the best-supported reasons in the meaningful order to prove that his or her central idea/thesis statement has merits. Each point provides an additional rationale for accepting your points. For a speech with three reasons or more, you should place the strongest reason last because this is the reason you believe the audience will find most persuasive. You should place the second strongest reason first because you want to start with a significant point. Place the other reasons in between. It is a good pattern to use when listeners are apathetic or neutral, or when they mildly favor or mildly oppose your claim.
Specific Purpose: to persuade my audience to vote in favor of the school income opportunities.
I. Income will enable the schools to restore vital programs. (second-strongest)
II. Income will enable the schools to give teachers the raises they need to keep up with the cost of living.
III. The actual cost to each member of the school community will be very small. (strongest)
In the following layout, a U.S. author found three strong reasons which she felt would persuade the audience to agree with her. Evaluate her reasons as well as their arrangement in the outline.
Specific Purpose: to convince the audience that the Twenty-Second Amendment, limiting U.S. president to two terms, should be repealed
Thesis Statement: The Twenty-Second Amendment was rejected by the Founding Fathers, as it is detrimental to the executive branch of government and it is undemocratic.
Body
Reason 1 I. The concept was rejected by the Founding Fathers.
A. Alexander Hamilton argued that a president should not be changed in time of national crisis.
B. In the book Decision in Philadelphia, a historian writes that the Founding Fathers felt a president should be judged by the people frequently.
Reason 2 II. It is detrimental to the executive branch.
A. A fixed term creates a lame-duck presidency.
B. A fixed term damages the president’s ability to conduct foreign policy.
Reason 3 III. It is undemocratic.
A. The amendment implies that people are ignorant.
B. Many constitutional scholars say the amendment constrains the popular will.
The speaker was successful in choosing three equally strong reasons to support the proposition. Notice that he saved the strongest reason – that the amendment is undemocratic – until the last. Also notice that the author supports reasons 1 and 3 with testimonial evidence, and reason 2 with examples.
Students sometimes have difficulty coordinating their reasons smoothly with the proposition. To phrase each heading of the body more clearly, place a mental “because” in front of each reason. This method is an effective organizational tool for both speaker and listener. It helps a speaker to be logical and clear in supporting the proposition, and it enables the listener to follow the speaker’s principal arguments.
Sample Speech Outline
“Ukraine Needs You: Emigration is Not the Way Out”
General purpose: to persuade
Specific purpose: to persuade my listeners to stay in Ukraine and not to emigrate.
Central idea/Thesis statement: Although life in Ukraine is tough, the new generation of intelligent and kind people can achieve self-realization and find happiness in this country.
Introduction
Attention material: Referring to the visual aid (picture of chaos).
Personal appeal: my own experience with the problem.
I am very concerned about the problem of emigration, not only because of the recent statistics of the World Bank which says that Ukraine is the 5th country in the world with the highest rate of emigration. I worry because I work for a project about education abroad, and I meet hundreds of people on regular basis who are willing to go abroad, and I know that the ultimate goal of most of them is to stay there.
Orientation material: The problem exists in every country: if you stay somewhere longer, as a member of the society, you will inevitably face the problems it has. Enlisting problems of the opposite: Why does unprecedented unemployment hit the stable US? Why is the whole European continent rocked by riots and manifestations of unsatisfied people?
Central Idea/Thesis statement: Although life in Ukraine is tough, the new generation of intelligent and kind people can achieve self-realization and find happiness in this country.
Preview: Let me show you a few reasons why life in the home country is the best decision for you. In particular, I differentiate three main reasons: professional, personal and “metaphysical”.
Transition: So, let’s view them closer and start with the most widespread reason for emigration, namely, professional.
Body
I. Professional advantages are one of the most important
A. There are good prospects to be satisfied with a job in Ukraine.
Transition: Provided you’re more ambitious, you might want to set up your own business.
B. There are favorable conditions to start one’s own business in this country.
1) Ukraine is a developing country and there are plenty of empty niches which are already occupied in other countries.
2) It is easier to start your own business in your country because one understands the informal rules.
Transition: From professional aspect we move to a personal one which is also important for me.
II. Personal reasons may become a strong argument to stay home.
A. There are bad and good people in every country and on every continent.
B. It is people – and not roads or goods in the supermarket – that determine the quality of our life.
Transition: Now we’ll consider the last reason.
III. Funny as it may seem, there are also some metaphysic reasons that stick me to this land.
A. According to Nostradamus prophesies, the territory of Borysthen (Dnipro) will become the new blooming civilization after the fall of the western world.
Transition: But if you don’t believe stories like this, read some scientific articles.
B. Scientists say that Ukraine’s land is favorable because of geological stability and will withstand even the drastic consequences of climate change.
Internal summary: I am aware that you can give me hundreds of counter reasons. But who will make this country a better place? It reminds me the words of American president Kennedy from his Inaugural Address in 1961: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country.”
Conclusion
What we all need to understand is that the new Ukraine will not fall from the heavens or be imported from any Union. It is only a critical mass of people of the new generation, people like we, who make a change in this country. Surround yourself with good people. And believe me, they can be found in any corner of the world.
And at the end, I want you to remember: chaos is the sent material to create a new environment of. Let’s stay home and start making structure of it.
Sources consulted:
1) Эммиграция из Украины и в Украину. Статистика http://www.bukovina.biz.ua/new/11917
2) Міфи давньої Греції: Походження Світу і Богів. http://madman.alfaspace.net/Greece/index.php?issue=m01&myth=1002
3) Lastenko, O. Passio-ERA or the Long Awaited Inevitability. sband.net/passio-era
Problem-Solution Patterns
A problem-solution order is a method of organizing persuasive speeches in which the first main point deals with the existence of a problem and the second main point presents a solution to the problem. In other words, in the first main point you demonstrate the need for a new policy by showing the extent and seriousness of the problem. In the second main point, you explain your plan for solving the problem and show its practicality.
Specific purpose: to persuade my audience that the use of antibacterial chemicals in household products is creating health and environmental problems.
Central idea/Thesis statement: The use of antibacterial chemicals in household products is a serious problem that requires action by government and consumers alike.
Main points:
I. The use of antibacterial chemicals in household products is a serious problem.
A. Rather than making us healthier, antibacterial chemicals in household
products are contributing to long-term health problems.
B. Antibacterial chemicals in household products are also creating environmental problems because they eventually end up in the U. S. water supply.
II. Solving these problems requires a combination of government and consumer action.
A. The Food and Drug Administration should institute regulations controlling the use of antibacterial chemicals in household products.
B. Consumers should avoid purchasing household products that contain antibacterial chemicals.